Primary cytomegalovirus infection in pregnant egyptian women confirmed by cytomegalovirus IgG avidity testing

ABSTRACT

To determine the frequency of primary cytomegalovirus [CMV] infection in pregnant Egyptian women using CMV IgG avidity testing. A cross-sectional study was conducted at Suez Canal University Hospital, Ismailia, Egypt. A total of 546 pregnant women, presenting for routine antenatal screening, were tested for CMV IgG and IgM using a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay [ELISA]. Sera from CMV IgM-positive women were tested by CMV IgG avidity assay All the 546 pregnant women were seropositive for anti-CMV IgG. Of the 546 women, 40 [7.3%] were positive or equivocal for IgM antibodies. All sera from the 40 women [IgG+/IgM+] showed a high or intermediate CMV IgG avidity index. Of the 40 women, 23 [57.5%] were in the second or third trimesters of pregnancy and had their first-trimester blood retrieved, and the tested CMV IgG avidity assay showed a high avidity index. Women who were IgM positive had no primary CMV infection in the index pregnancy as evidenced by the high CMV IgG avidity testing